By all accounts, 2019 may very well put debate to rest on how to hold a phone while viewing video…
Project Xtraction, the Jackie Chan/John Cena two-hander from director Scott Waugh, is now slated to be packaged next year with an original series to be hosted on subscription-based premium app, Ficto, a new shortform video series platform from LA-based technology and content startup, Fiction Riot.
The film is just one of three films announced for short form serial production among a listed number of up to twenty original and licensed shows for the new app following its introductory launch on Wednesday. The move comes in light of a recent study from Ooyala that suggests more than half of all video content is viewed globally on mobile devices, including longer form film and TV programs not optimized for a mobile experience.
The app aims to achieve just that through leveraging native mobile features such as vertical video, 360 viewing, AR, chat, livestream, and more, according to the announcement. As such, Ficto will allow content makers to readily adapt and craft content exclusively for mobile through a toolbox method, including professionals in Hollywood.
Through smart contracts and up-front agreements, the newly-launched immersive service, which goes live in early 2019, is powered by blockchain to empower creativity and transparency, as well as provide fair and timely USD compensation of royalties for artists and all parties involved, based on how often their content is viewed. Fiction Riot will be meeting with content creators to secure and develop its second cohort of series to follow its consumer launch – creators who can benefit with the ability to create more quickly and cost-effectively bring new ideas, characters, and serialized shows to market.
“We designed Ficto specifically for mobile, with the mindset that if early TVs were designed to be hand-held, content today would look and behave much differently,” said Mike Esola, 20-year Hollywood veteran, CEO and Co-Founder, Fiction Riot. “With Ficto, we want to empower content creators with a way to not only distribute video-based “fast fiction” to viewers, but also an easy-to-use toolset to allow for vertical video orientation and integrate fun mobile features to enhance the storytelling and interactivity. It’s not just about the format, it’s about the experience.”
“Fiction Riot is filling a void for filmmakers, and we’re excited to be among the first to embrace the advantages of the Ficto platform to enhance our storytelling ability on mobile devices,” said Claude dal Farra, CEO of BCDF Films. “Until now, we haven’t had access to the tools that make this process turnkey. Ficto offers a great extension for our films such as ‘Can You Keep A Secret.’ We can create an entirely original but related storyline to the film allowing fans to engage both early and in an interactive way – so they get to know the characters and also generate overall fan buzz.”
“Fiction Riot has built something special because it provides artists with a turn-key approach to mobile content. It removes many of the distribution layers, makes payments transparent and has the potential to reach millions of consumers,” said Lawrence Grey, President and CEO, Grey Matter Productions and Ideogram Media. “I think it’s safe to say Hollywood is finally at a place where we have to be looking at mobile differently.”
Project Xtraction sees Chan and Cena joining forces from a script by Arash Amel, centered on a Chinese private security contractor and a former U.S. Marine who join forces to rescue civilians in Baghdad, and stop a group of terrorists from stealing a fortune of oil from a Middle East refinery. Pilou Asbæk (Ghost In The Shell, Overlord) also stars with Chan producing next to Joe Tam, Esmond Ren and Hans Canosa.
With Ficto getting the ball rolling, the new series hailing from Project Xtraction will be presented possibly with a three-to-five episodic, and with each episode comprised of five-to-seven minute durations. How’s that for a snackable approach to your Chan craze?
Visit www.fictionriot.com to tend to your curiousities.